Jules Dolly Art: Jules Dolly Workshop Success

Anyone who delivers workshops know that the preparation and toolkit required can be quite hefty. I have spent my fair share over these last 10 years delivering and facilitating workshops within employment and within my own self employment. Workshops based on a self-development theme, e.g. Vision Board, lots of activities that require preparation and group work.

However, it NEVER ceases to amaze me how much stuff I take to a Healing Art Workshop!

I love it!

The colour and the textures, the shapes and the smells.

I have a checklist and tick things off as I gather my supplies. Never forgetting incense, my playlist and ipod speakers plus my tibetan symbols to clear the energy. Setting up, the room looked like a children's tea-party. I was only able to access the room an hour before, and boy, could I have done with 2 hours? Yep!

It looked great. Coverings on the floor, coverings on the back of each seat and lovely wash away tablecloths.

All our 8 ladies turned up, 2 from Lytham St Anne's near Blackpool, 2 from Kirkham, near Preston, and 4 from Liverpool. I was so excited to share the process.

After introductions, I asked everyone to write down their worry on a post it note and sealed it in a silver foil dish. Anything that may have been troubling them: "Am I good enough to do this?" "Will I find my way home after", "I should be spending time doing something else today". Whatever their worry (and some wrote a few), they all were popped into the foil dish to be put to one side and with the aim that it would not be at the forefront of their mind during the day.

Funny, I forgot to ask if they wanted their worry back at the end! Maybe they wanted to take someone else's home with them?!!

In clearing up, I put the foil dish in the bin bag - so noone gets any worries!!

Things got well under way and before we knew it, everyone was getting stuck in, preparing their background with collage material, tissues, papers, felt, fabric. They had all brought a rich supply of their own, which was wonderful. This was an introduction, however some of the ladies had done collage before, scrapbooking, acrylics, and we even had an art school grad in the mix. So in using my Jules Dolly template everyone created such a different end result. Don't you just LOVE it when that happens?

We had to break for lunch, and it gave everyone a chance to have a walk around the wildflower centre, visit the little gift shop and enjoy the break in the rainy clouds - they were so kind to us yesterday, just when we stopped for lunch.

You know what it's normally like when you go to workshops, everyone drags themselves back into the afternoon session, feeling the affects of the lunch, people tend to droop. Not this GANG! Oh no!

They were back in before our lunch time had finished and eager to carry on with their dolly canvas.

The room was a real healing zone - a meditative space - contemplation was happening. At times there was chatter, certain moments I would be talking, guiding, visiting each of them to assist and advise. Other points in the afternoon, we listened to music, and it was quiet. Blissful Healing Art in the Make.

I was so taken aback by what they achieved. In an Hour and Half just as we stopped for lunch, they had formed their background and fixed Dolly Template. In the afternoon, they steamed ahead and by 3.30, they were finishing off and signing their names. Truly Remarkable.

Magic happens when healing art is given the space to appear. I felt that happen yesterday and I'm sure they did too. So before I write far too much - here's a round-up of all the lovely ladies and their finished paintings.